Hey! I am going to be a junior next year and I really want to get into UCLA or maybe a high ranking UC where I could also get a big chunk of scholarship or maybe even a full ride! That is my goal.
That’s why I decided to pick up 5 ap classes next year:
APUSH
AP Eng
AP Art Drawing
AP Spanish Literature
AP Science (I don’t know which one to take!!) but right now it might be AP Environmental
And there’s Pre-cal
I am also doing 2 sports, so two seasons are taken up and I am an officer for 2 busy clubs.
The thing is I am scared that it might be too much for me and including the SAT and ACT prep too.
Not sure what my priorities should be at this point and what I should do time management wise with my future schedule.
How can I survive next year doing all this? Should I give something up?
And which science should I take? I like bio but AP bio is very rigorous and my schedule is so busy itself and I don’t think learning about the environment like carbon cycles is interesting (from remembering of my earth science days in 6th grade… I did not like it)
At my school, AP Bio kids have like 2 hours of homework every night. My school doesn’t offer AP environmental science but I hear it’s comparatively easier. For AP English we had weekly Socratic seminars that we had to do at home, but the workload wasn’t too difficult. If you’re a strong reader, you’ll be fine. I’m a junior right now and I only took 2 APs (English and psych) and found myself wishing I had taken a third so I didn’t have so much downtime. Although, once it got to be around February, I was glad that I only had 2 APs, because my free time was now being spent studying for SAT and ACT.
Your test scores and gpa are going to be more important in the long run. Are you planning on majoring in art? If not, then drop AP art. Also, have you taken any AP classes as a sophomore or freshman?
If this is your first time taking AP classes, it’s probably best to have no more than 3 so you don’t overwhelm yourself. Taking AP classes isn’t impressive if you get all B’s in them. However, if you already know how AP classes work, then only you can judge how well you’ll be able to manage your time. A lot of the smartest kids in my class take like 5-6 APs in one year and end up getting Bs in most of them because they didn’t have enough time to study for everything.
Junior year is easy until you hit the second semester and all of a sudden you have AP tests, SAT and ACT, and final exams all at once. Your best bet is to talk to kids who have already taken the course and ask them how much homework there is. Drop the classes that will take up too much Of your time. Also, depending on how much your parents can pay for college, maybe think about not taking a few AP exams, so then you’ll be less stressed, even if you miss the chance to fulfill a few college credits.
If you want to get into UCLA or UCB (or any prestigious school, really) get a SAT/ACT tutor in September or October and meet with them once a week. Then when you take the tests in the spring, you’ll be more than prepared to get the scores you need.
@microssrunner17 is exactly right in that if you take too many, you won’t do as well since you’ll probably be spread to thin and be too overwhelmed. I second everything else they mentioned in their response
I took 5 AP’s this year, did a sport and had a few officer positions as well and it was very challenging, filled with a lot of sleepless nights and stressful days - I’m not sure I would recommend it (although I took ap chem, ap physics and ap calc on top of apush and lang) - my grades first semester were decent but I burned out second semester and my grades lowered.
I would recommend APES with the other AP classes you’re taking so you don’t get too overwhelmed, but I think that your planned schedule is doable. Have you taken AP Spanish Lang already, or are you a native speaker? If not, I would take that class first then spanish lit senior year.
Also, I would HIGHLY recommend doing some hardcore SAT/ACT prep OVER THE SUMMER and finishing your SAT/ACT early junior year. I did this and it freed up SO much time this year while everyone else was struggling to balance AP test studying with standardized test studying.
I didn’t realize until after this year that getting into good schools (like UC’s) doesn’t require doing a ton of AP’s. It’s just about taking the ones in subjects you enjoy and excelling in them. Nevertheless, it’s good that you’re challenging yourself and junior year will be tough with 5 AP’s, but it’s one of the most invaluable experiences that’ll prepare you for college and onwards. Good luck!
I think APES is good for my schedule but the teacher for it barely started teaching it and I heard that he did prepare the students for the test at all until last minute and gave them a bunch of tests that lowered their grade as well.
I took 2 AP classes this year: APWH and AP Spanish Lang.
I do not want to spread myself thin, but I have to take a history class so I think APUSH is just a given to me and AP Eng too.
AP Spanish Lit, I just want to get my Spanish classes over with and not have a break junior year and forget Spanish and then take that class senior year.
For science, I want an AP class to challenge myself but all of them are hard except for APES but the teacher for it… and also I’m interested in Bio more and I think I will need bio and chem more in life.
And for AP Art, I’m not majoring in art but if I drop it I don’t know what other elective to take. I do like art and I am pretty good at it, but the thing is it might take a lot of my time.
If I do take these classes and mess up and get a B or not a good grade in the AP tests, wouldn’t it still be better than not taking the AP course? Because gpa-wise, a B is still a 4.0 for AP and also colleges want to see students challenge themselves right? Although yes I am truly aiming for straight A’s all my years in high school.
I think I will study for SAT and ACT during my breaks like summer and winter, but if I do that, then do I still study during school days too? Like to refresh my memory or is studying in the summer all I need for SAT and ACT? I heard there is Khan Academy so that could help me self study.
Is it better to drop a AP class or a sport/sports?
What schools are you thinking about applying to? And what major?? That would make this whole process a lot easier!
Your gpa depends. Some schools unweight gpa during admissions, so even though your AP B+ would be good for your HS gpa, it would drop your college gpa. For example, my weighted HS gpa is a 4.02, but for some of my colleges who unweight gpa, its a 3.9. Look into what colleges you’re applying to; usually they have gpa information on their websites, or I’m sure you could check here on CC.
If you really want to take Bio or Chem, why not just do it senior year? That way, if you do happen to get a low grade, it won’t matter as much because you’ll already be accepted to a college. I’m going to assume you’ve already taken at least 3 years of Spanish to be in AP? We don’t offer AP Spanish at my school so I’m not sure how the levels work at your school, but if you already have 2+ years in Spanish, why take more? Do you want to be fluent, or do your colleges require more than 2 years?
Is there another elective that you could take besides art? Maybe choir, band, gym, or regular art? If it will take up lots of your time outside of school, maybe reconsider it.
As for dropping AP or a sport, I think that’s up to you. What’s more important to you? Colleges want to see depth in your sports and extra curriculars, so maybe dropping the sport wouldn’t be a good idea. I think if you dropped an AP and just took 4, you’d be in a better situation.
Khan academy is specifically designed for the new SAT, but it’ll help with your ACT too. What schools are you thinking about? If you’re applying to any that are 40% acceptance rate or lower, I really do recommend that you get a tutor in the beginning of the year. Studying it on your own time and actually retaining what mistakes you’re making is a lot harder than it seems, and a tutor helps a lot.
I want to apply to the UCs because I want to stay in the state and I think its more prestigious than the Cal States. My dream school would be UCLA or maybe USC if the cost is low. I would even like UCI and Berkeley I feel like might be too high for me. So maybe around that range and for the major, I am undecided, unfortunately!
Oh yeah I totally forgot about unweighted GPA! Thanks for the tip, definitely will check on colleges and whether they base on unweighted or weighted.
I was actually thinking about doing AP Bio next year and then AP Chem and AP Environmental senior year if anything? I was talking to a senior who took both AP Bio and APES and he recommended me to take AP Bio.
For Spanish, I have taken 2 years of it in High School and I want to continue taking it because of both wanting to be fluent and colleges are looking for 4 years of a foreign lang I heard?
I was thinking of choir but auditions passed already and it might also take a lot of time because they have a lot of field trips. Other electives I don’t think I am that interested in and I do want to take an AP art course in High School because I know won’t be able to in college or the future.
Grades are a higher priority to me than sports but I still love my sports and don’t want to drop them. I think its just difficult to chose whether to drop anything or not because I have my reasons on why I want to keep what I planned so far.
I never had a tutor before but I feel like maybe self studying will be more time efficient and cheaper as well.
I took Native Spanish 2 my first year and AP Spanish Lang my second year. I was able to skip Native Spanish 3 because I already took Spanish classes in middle school.
Not all schools require 4 years. Again, check all the websites to admissions requirements, they’ll tell you how many years of foreign language, math, English, etc that you need to be admitted. I Don’t know if this is correct, but let’s say hypothetically that USC only requires 2 years for admission–then cut out Spanish and replace it with bio. I really think you need to cut something and only take 4 APs. I took 2 APs junior year and I’m taking 4 next year, plus an honors class and even I don’t know if I’m overloading myself. Burn out is real and it’s hard to recover from and you want to avoid burnout as much as possible.
As for tutoring, it all depends on your learning style. If you can get test prep books and force yourself to do practice tests every weekend, then you’ll be good. For me, self studying was horrible because I couldn’t understand what I was getting wrong. I’ve only met with my ACT tutor about six times in one month and my scores on my practice tests have jumped up 3 composite score points. Imagine what my scores would be if I had been working with my tutor all year! Most tutors charge somewhere between $20-$40 per session. If you want UCLA or USC, your ACT is going to have to be well into the 30s to be competitive, and you SAT is going to have to be 1300+. Go on khan academy, make an account, and take a practice SAT that they have on the site, and take it all at once like its a real test. Depending on what your score is, then you’ll be able to decide whether or not you should get a tutor. Personally, I’d rather spend a few hundred on a tutor for a year if it meant I could get into a really great school later on. Wouldn’t you? If you really want to get into these competitive schools, you need to start prepping now.
Mostly it is either a 2 year or 3 year requirement for Foreign Lang but I heard it was highly recommended to have 4 from my counselor. I think if I have to cut anything out it would be AP Art but I am currently wondering if I could ask to finish/start on some art pieces during the summer and it could count for next years AP Art class. But I won’t know what class to get instead of Art.
Right now, I am not sure of my capabilities and whether these schedule is doable for me. Is there a way to avoid burnout even with this schedule?
I think during the summer, I’ll try self studying and if I don’t get concepts etc. I think I’ll opt in for a tutor.
In foreign languages, completion of AP Language “counts” as 4 years for almost all colleges. Certainly take AP Spanish Lit if you want, but from a college admissions perspective, it’s not needed.
In my school, I heard the Lit class is very easy homework load wise and grading is easy too though I know my comprehension is really bad so I can’t be sure if it’ll be easy for me. I want to improve in my Spanish but knowing the teacher I doubt the class will help. So taking the class won’t do much for my college apps? If so, I could reevaluate taking it along with Art. It just feels a little had to let either one of them go for some reason
